Doug Mills/The New York TimesQuarterback Robert Griffin III ran for 72 yards and passed for 163 in the Redskins’ victory.

LANDOVER, Md. — It seemed like the Giants were past this. Their second-half slump, a veritable staple under Coach Tom Coughlin in recent years, appeared to hit its nadir a few weeks back with a disaster in Cincinnati, and the Giants had rebounded from that thrashing by delivering an utter demolition of Green Bay two Sundays ago.So yes, it all seemed behind them. In the days after that victory, the Giants had even talked about how they had come together. Had snapped out of it. Had found their focus — a critical development that would allow them to begin the upswing that marked last season’s Super Bowl run even earlier this time around.

But instead they slipped back. Faced with an opportunity to put a stranglehold on their division lead and solidify their playoff standing, the Giants melted down, blowing a fourth-quarter lead Monday night and losing to the Washington Redskins, 17-16, before a frenzied crowd at FedEx Field.

A victory would have given the Giants a two-game lead over the Dallas Cowboys in the N.F.C. East with four games remaining; with a loss, the Giants’ advantage dropped to a single game over both the Cowboys and the Redskins, who have won three games in a row behind the wunderkind quarterback Robert Griffin III.

“We knew it wasn’t going to be easy,” defensive end Osi Umenyiora said. “We have to find a way to close this thing out.”

His colleague on the defensive line, Jason Pierre-Paul, was blunter: “It’s a game we should have won,” he said.

Pierre-Paul was far from alone in that thinking. While this defeat was not nearly as ugly as the one to the Bengals (or, for that matter, the Giants’ two losses to the Redskins last season), Coughlin and his players will rue the result because of what might have been.

The Giants dominated possession, running more than twice as many plays as Washington through three quarters (55-26) and holding the ball for nearly seven minutes more. They were 9 for 15 on third-down conversions and did not punt the ball in the first half. Running back Ahmad Bradshaw — leading a running game that can often be an offensive bellwether — finished with 103 yards.

In short, the Giants looked to be doing all the things that would have — or should have — built them a sizable lead. Instead, they limped to a 13-10 halftime lead and scored just 3 points in the final 30 minutes, undone by penalties (an uncharacteristic nine for 73 yards for the game), mental mistakes and maddening inconsistency.

“This isn’t real complicated,” Coughlin said. “I don’t know what happened in the second half. We certainly didn’t come out to play.”

The most frustrating sequence for the Giants was also the game’s turning point. It came in the third quarter when Washington, which trailed by 3 points at the time, seemed poised to take the lead as Griffin sprinted 46 yards around left end on a dazzling option play to the Giants’ 15. On the next play, however, the rookie running back Alfred Morris fumbled and — after a heated scrum which included defensive tackle Linval Joseph getting kicked in the groin and barely restraining himself from stomping on an opposing player — the Giants survived a replay review and took possession. If they could score a touchdown it would give them a 10-point lead.

But they could not convert. Eli Manning drove the team to the Washington 17-yard line but watched his pass on third down bounce off Victor Cruz’s hands, forcing the Giants to settle for a field goal. That left their lead vulnerable and Griffin took advantage, leading a 12-play, 86-yard touchdown drive that he finished with an 8-yard scoring pass to Pierre Garcon.

Manning finished the game with respectable numbers, completing 20 of 33 passes for 280 yards, but he could not lead the Giants to another late comeback. At one point during the fourth quarter, as the Giants tried to rally, Manning was sacked for a 7-yard loss and got up shaking his head in frustration as he headed to the sideline.

His counterpart, Griffin, was more buoyant, bouncing around the field in his usual style. For all the attention Manning receives in New York, even his scrutiny cannot compare to the phenomenon that Griffin has become in Washington. Griffin jerseys were ubiquitous in the crowd Monday night — as always — and fans chanted Griffin’s nickname, RG3, before the game even began.

In the first game between the teams Griffin was everywhere, rushing for 89 yards, passing for 258 yards and scrambling for 19 yards on a forgettable (at least for the Giants) fourth-and-10 that kept the Redskins’ hopes alive. In the days leading up to this second meeting, the Giants had the backup quarterback David Carr — who jokingly called himself “RG Minus 5” — and speedy receiver Jerrel Jernigan simulate Griffin’s shiftiness in practice.

As hard as Jernigan and Carr worked, though, it was impossible to truly prepare. Griffin ran for 72 yards and threw for 163 yards on Monday, operating the option offense so effectively that defensive end Justin Tuck said the Giants “were just guessing” most of the time when they tried to figure out which Redskins player actually had the ball.

Griffin even fumbled well, losing the ball after a 12-yard scamper in the first quarter but having it pop up into the hands of a teammate, Josh Morgan, who then ran into the end zone for a touchdown.

“It was totally by design,” Griffin said through a smile. He added: “We made plays in crucial situations.”

The Giants, mostly, did not. Manning helped the Giants bounce back after the fluky fumble touchdown early, throwing a touchdown pass to tight end Martellus Bennett. But late in the game, after the Redskins took their final lead, Manning and the offense went nowhere.

On the Giants’ first drive after falling behind, they ran three plays for a loss of a yard. On their second drive, they ran five plays for 12 yards and punted with just under four minutes remaining. They did not touch the ball again.

And so now, with four games left in the regular season, they are only barely ahead in a division race that suddenly feels far closer than the Giants would have liked.

“Four more games to go to determine our future,” tackle Will Beatty said. “It’s still in our hands, but we just made it a lot harder for ourselves.”

EXTRA POINTS

Offensive lineman Sean Locklear was carted off the field in the fourth quarter after sustaining a knee injury. The Giants did not announce the severity of the injury but several Giants players in the locker room said they were told it was significant.

\I can't wait to continue to see this kind of rationalization for the next 10 years from new yorkers.

A couple of guys on there were trying to be voices of reason -- to no avail. The post comparing Sheli's v. RG III's stats this year was surprising. However, to some of those guys, if an opposing QB doesn't throw for 400yds and 4 TD's against them, he's no good. If he does those things, then he's just lucky. Again, they're New Yorkers -- worse than Cowboys fans in so many ways. I'm even surprised I wrote that, but it really seems to be the case.

\I can't wait to continue to see this kind of rationalization for the next 10 years from new yorkers.

A couple of guys on there were trying to be voices of reason -- to no avail. The post comparing Sheli's v. RG III's stats this year was surprising. However, to some of those guys, if an opposing QB doesn't throw for 400yds and 4 TD's against them, he's no good. If he does those things, then he's just lucky. Again, they're New Yorkers -- worse than Cowboys fans in so many ways. I'm even surprised I wrote that, but it really seems to be the case.

Agree with all of this.

The stats comparison should really only be a surprise if you are a NY fan (that's not a dig at you, I just got through reading the responses to the guy who posted the stats). We. Have. An. Excellent. QB. Frankly, I'd take him over happy feet Peyton and his "slow" brother, Eli.

I know he got a pretty good zip on the ball. He has a quick release. . . once I seen a coupla' throws, I was just like 'Yeah, he's that dude.'"

FLWSkin wrote:I like the Giant's fans on Facebook who were trying to say that RGIII sucks because he hasn't won a Super Bowl yet....um, he's a rookie people. Work with me here....

There was a sign up at the game that ESPN caught that said ELI [picture of 2 lombardi trophies] > RGIII

Before I could even remark how idiotic that was, my wife started laughing.

ME: What's so funny?[looking a bit confused]
HER: That moron's sign
ME: Huh?
HER: Isn't Griffin a rookie?
ME: Yes
HER: Then how could he possibly have 1, let alone 2 trophies (she didn't realize it was the lombardi trophy)? Hasn't the Giants quarterback been in the league for like 5 years?
ME: [Got up, kissed her, then said:] Almost 10, actually.

I know he got a pretty good zip on the ball. He has a quick release. . . once I seen a coupla' throws, I was just like 'Yeah, he's that dude.'"

Doug Mills/The New York Times
Quarterback Robert Griffin III ran for 72 yards and passed for 163 in the Redskins’ victory.

The most frustrating sequence for the Giants was also the game’s turning point. It came in the third quarter when Washington, which trailed by 3 points at the time, seemed poised to take the lead as Griffin sprinted 46 yards around left end on a dazzling option play to the Giants’ 15. On the next play, however, the rookie running back Alfred Morris fumbled and — after a heated scrum which included defensive tackle Linval Joseph getting kicked in the groin and barely restraining himself from stomping on an opposing player — the Giants survived a replay review and took possession. If they could score a touchdown it would give them a 10-point lead.

Wow...talk about some homer reporting. D-lineman kicked in the groin, ah no, try Monty was trying to get his leg free because said D-lineman was twisting his leg for no reason other than to hurt Monty, and he def did NOT restrain himself from stomping on Monty because that is actually what he did. Monty did kick him in the groin a little but the guy was twisting his leg and Monty was just trying to make the guy let go and honestly, that is what the guy deserved.

Doug Mills/The New York TimesQuarterback Robert Griffin III ran for 72 yards and passed for 163 in the Redskins’ victory.

The most frustrating sequence for the Giants was also the game’s turning point. It came in the third quarter when Washington, which trailed by 3 points at the time, seemed poised to take the lead as Griffin sprinted 46 yards around left end on a dazzling option play to the Giants’ 15. On the next play, however, the rookie running back Alfred Morris fumbled and — after a heated scrum which included defensive tackle Linval Joseph getting kicked in the groin and barely restraining himself from stomping on an opposing player — the Giants survived a replay review and took possession. If they could score a touchdown it would give them a 10-point lead.

Wow...talk about some homer reporting. D-lineman kicked in the groin, ah no, try Monty was trying to get his leg free because said D-lineman was twisting his leg for no reason other than to hurt Monty, and he def did NOT restrain himself from stomping on Monty because that is actually what he did. Monty did kick him in the groin a little but the guy was twisting his leg and Monty was just trying to make the guy let go and honestly, that is what the guy deserved.

If Morris hadn't fumbled, we would have probably won by 8 or more. The Griffin fumble that went for a TD would have been a TD anyway, probably on the next play or two. Griffin's game (rat 101) was mediocre, but only for him. Bitchin' about his low total passing yards is absurd. In the first half, the Skins D. couldn't get him the ball, and why pass in the second: Morris was ripping thru the Giants like a bulldozer through paper. Escaping notice, almost, was Griffin's masterful running out the clock at the end of the game. It was perfection itself-- utterly calm and crushingly efficient, chalking up three first downs. From the looks on Giant faces on the sidelines, it was totally clear that the Giants knew they would never get the ball back. If the game had been longer, the Skins would have gone on to another score. The G-men were beaten. It was obvious and delicious. They could have lost by 15.

The Giants, if it can be said they threw the game away, did so in the first half by having to settle for field goals and Eli's missing open receivers long.
Advantage Griffin. He had a better game than Eli and is a better player, as most stats indicate. Note: three of Griffin's passes were flat out dropped; otherwise, his RAT would have been even better. Saw some interesting stats recently. If you subtract balls dropped by Redskin receivers and deliberate throwaways and balls thrown while being hit, Griffin would have a percentage completion rate of over 80%.

I bet 5 years from now, people will still think RG3 is a running QB lol. It amazes me how little people of others teams know about us at this point in the season. Ive seen on a few boards that people think we can't score. Even though we've been ranked from #1 to now # 8 the whole season. People think griffin dink and dunks even though he is close to leading the league in ypa AND ypc...They think our offense is gimmicky, even though Gruden masterfully showed how griffin reads the defensive ends to make us #2 rushing offense in the league by running or handing off where there are less defenders. They think that he cant read defenses, when that seems to me, to be his best attribute among many great ones! I also think he's going to hold up just fine to these"few" hits that he takes...man, what a friggin trade up we made redskins fans!!!

And I've heard one commentator say that RGIII isn't any good because he has so few attempts and they "just run the ball instead" like that is some evil outdated concept or something. Sorry we are a balanced offense...didn't know that was a bad thing.

I'm really impressed by the quick read and pass after getting the ball

there are a couple of plays that we are now using that have defenses looking like they have NO CLUE about who has the ball or whether it's a run or a pass

the giants defenders at the end were completely dis-oriented by the Redskins offense

P A T I E N C E - The Redskins will improve the product on the field if Dan Snyder just let's Scott & his FO do their jobs Dan needs to stop screwing things up and let Scott get this franchise back together

Many people aren't going to like RG3 period, he is what used to be called a anomaly. Remember for how long did the QB have to be a 6'5 white guy with a rocket arm? Now mobile QB's are the requirement. The NFL is evolving where the fans aren't. I hate to say it but there is still a lot of racism in the fans of the NFL as well........

LANDOVER— The player that the Ravens spent all week trying to devise a way to contain was finally stopped. Robert Griffin III wasn’t on the field after the Washington Redskins’ rookie took one more punishing hit in an afternoon filled with them, the last by Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, injuring Griffin’s knee and knocking him out of the game.

All the Ravens’ defense had to do was get one stop against a rookie backup quarterback and a victory and a playoff berth would have been theirs. That stop never came and the Ravens were again forced to watch an opposing kicker split the uprights to seal their fate.

week after Pittsburgh Steelers’ third-string quarterback Charlie Batch beat them, Redskins rookie backup Kirk Cousins tied the game with a touchdown pass and two-point conversion with 29 seconds left in regulation. The Redskins then won it in overtime as Richard Crawford’s 64-yard punt return set up Kai Forbath’s game-winning 34-yard field goal in the Ravens’ 31-28 loss in front of an announced 81,178 at FedEx Field.

For the second straight week, the Ravens blew a fourth-quarter lead and were denied a chance to lock up a playoff berth. The Ravens are now 9-4 and losers of consecutive games for the first time since October of 2009

“It was tough to watch,” said running back Ray Rice, who gave the Ravens a 28-20 lead with a 7-yard touchdown run with 4:47 left in the game. “I firmly believed that we had the game won but we didn’t.”

With Griffin on the sideline after leading his team inside the Ravens’ 20, Cousins, a fourth-round pick out of Michigan State, hit Leonard Hankerson for 16 yards and then found Pierre Garcon alone in the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown. The Redskins needed a two-point conversion to tie, but even with several Ravens’ defenders, including Ed Reed, calling out the quarterback draw, Cousins was able to take the snap and run it up the middle for the conversion.

The Ravens didn’t get a first down on the first possession of overtime and then couldn’t contain Crawford, who caught Sam Koch’s 56-yard punt and sprinted around defenders until he ran out of gas and was tackled by Koch at the Ravens’ 24. Three plays later, Forbath ended a grueling back-and-forth game played in wet and sloppy conditions.

“They came in at a crucial time and made those plays at the end with the backup QB making those throws,” Reed said. “We knew [Cousins’ quarterback draw] was coming, which was crazy, but we have to execute at the end of the day. … It came down to one play executing. That’s all that mattered.”

While the loss may have been deflating for the Ravens, they did not lose any ground in the standings. The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals were both beaten Sunday , meaning that the Ravens still have a two-game lead with three to play in the AFC North. However, the Ravens’ chances for a first-round bye continue to fade. Depending on what happens Monday night between the New England Patriots and Houston Texans — the top two seeds in the AFC — the Ravens could be seeded as low as fourth in the conference by late Monday night.

The Denver Broncos, who are 10-3 and will be at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday, have passed the Ravens and now they share the same record as the Indianapolis Colts.

“I don’t know if people want me to be [ticked] off or [what],” said Ravens wide receiver Anquan Boldin who caught two touchdowns in the first half. “We’re still going to be a playoff team. We’re still going to win the [AFC] North. What else can I say? We let one get away today.”

In the process, the Ravens may have also lost a couple of key performers. Right guard Marshal Yanda, the team’s best offensive lineman, sprained his right ankle in overtime and left the stadium in a walking boot and on crutches. Inside linebacker Jameel McClain left the game in the third quarter with a neck injury, leaving undrafted free agents Albert McClellan and Josh Bynes to man the middle down the stretch. Rice (hip pointer) and fullback Vonta Leach (sprained ankle) were also banged up.

The physical toll added to the frustration in the postgame locker room as reality had set in that the Ravens did virtually everything that they wanted to do against the Redskins (7-6) and they still lost.

“I think we should have won this game,” said Ravens linebacker Paul Kruger who had 1.5 of the Ravens’ three sacks. “It’s just a killer to come down here, play hard, play a full game and lose the way we did. It’s just rough. We have to do everything we can to get back this coming week and play a good game. We really need it.”

On offense, Flacco broke from his struggles to complete 16-of-21 passes for three touchdowns, 182 yards and a 121.5 quarterback rating. Against the NFL’s fourth-ranked rushing defense, the Ravens revived their running game to the tune of 186 yards. Rice had 121 of them, eclipsing the 100-yard mark for the first time since Week 5.

On defense, the Ravens were gouged for 186 yards — a league-high this year for any team — and two touchdowns in the first quarter. But after that, the Ravens, playing without Terrell Suggs, mostly controlled Griffin and hit him at every opportunity.

Still, the Ravens made too many mistakes. Flacco committed two turnovers — a fumble and an interception — in the third quarter and both led to Forbath field goals. On the interception, the Ravens had the ball at the Redskins’ 11 and at least figured to have a field goal before Flacco was hit by Ryan Kerrigan and then fluttered a pass up the middle in the arms of Washington’s London Fletcher.

For as well as the Ravens played defensively, they allowed the Redskins to drive 85 yards on 13 plays to get the tying touchdown and conversion. Redskins’ receivers ran free in the secondary throughout the drive with the final miscue coming when Chris Johnson lost Pierre Garcon in the back of the end zone.

Cousins went 2-for-2 for 26 yards on the final drive and also got a pass interference call on Johnson.

“Obviously, it's a frustrating situation, especially to allow a backup rookie to come in and make plays the way he did,” cornerback Cary Williams said. “It's frustrating, but we got to find a way to win. Good teams find a way, and we didn't."